1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a nut for a stringed musical instrument and, in particular, to a compensated nut for a guitar.
2. Description of Related Art
Lute-type instruments and other stringed musical instruments have been used for many centuries, but proper intonation of each of the strings is very difficult to achieve. The strings of a conventional guitar, for example, are generally not properly intonated and, in fact, it is generally considered not possible to perfectly tune a conventional guitar. These variations in the intonation and tune of a conventional guitar are known in the industry and these deviations are generally accepted. Guitar players, for example, may use assorted playing techniques in an attempt to minimize these variations, but these techniques are difficult to learn, use and master.
Conventional guitars, whether electrical, acoustical or classical, typically have six strings with six different pitches: E, B, G, D, A and E. As known in the art, the acoustical characteristics of the different strings are dependent upon factors such as the gauge or diameter of the string, the tension of the string, the material of which the string is constructed, and whether the string is wound or plain. Typically the lower pitch strings are wound strings and the higher pitch strings are plain strings.
Standard guitars have a body, elongated neck, finger board, bridge, nut and a series of frets positioned along the neck. The frets are ridges of material such as metal or wood which extend outwardly and generally perpendicularly across the finger board of the guitar. The frets are typically positioned according to a mathematical formula called the xe2x80x9cRule of 18xe2x80x9d which is used to determine the position of the frets. The frets allow for other notes and chords to be played when the guitar player""s fingers press down on the desired guitar strings at the selected frets locations between the bridge and the nut. As known in the industry, the Rule of 18 is imprecise and it does not result in perfect intonation of each string at each fret location. Most guitar players, however, prefer that their instruments intonate correctly so that each string is equally in tune at all points along the keyboard or finger board.
Conventional guitars may include an adjustable bridge to improve the tuning of the guitar. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,541,320 issued to Sciuto and U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,031 issued to Fender disclose adjustable bridges which allow individual strings to be adjusted and intonated. In particular, the adjustable bridges provide a means for allowing each string to be adjustably compensated according to its length, tension, diameter and material that comprises the string.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,783 issued to Feiten, et al., discloses an adjustable bridge with individual adjustable saddles. Each saddle is located in a groove or trough and each saddle includes a threaded capture which receives a screw. The screws are connected to a transverse boss which extends substantially perpendicular to the strings. Turning a particular screw causes the connected saddle to move in a direction longitudinally to the strings to adjust the intonation of that string. Specifically, the saddle element upon which the particular string rests is longitudinally adjusted utilizing an allen wrench to turn the screw thereby longitudinally adjusting the saddle element in relation to the string. As the screw is turned, the saddle is physically adjusted by virtue of the threaded connection between the screw and the saddle. The Feiten patent explains that testing and continuous adjusting of the bridge is repeated until the intonation of the fretted string matches the intonation of the open string. This method then has to be repeated for all other strings.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,956 issued to LoJacono, et al., discloses a guitar tuning apparatus with an adjustable bridge including a plurality of adjustable saddle bridge members and a nut having a plurality of adjustable nut saddle members. The adjustment of both the bridge and nut determines the length of each string and the longitudinal position of each string. In particular, the adjustable bridge has the plurality of adjustable saddle members secured to the body of the guitar and the nut has a sinusoidal configuration with a plurality of adjustable nut saddle members mounted in a nut frame. The number of saddles in the nut and bridge correspond to the number of strings of the guitar, and the bridge and saddle members are adjusted to establish as true an intonation of each string as possible. The LoJacono patent, however, discloses a complex structure with multiple parts that requires adjustment of each individual string at both the nut and bridge of the guitar. Disadvantageously, this complex structure is subject to rattles, goes out of tune, requires periodic adjustments, and increases the costs of the guitar.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,295,404 issued to Smith discloses a compensated nut for a lute-type instrument. The nut includes an overhang or extending portion that extends over a portion of the finger board and the overhang portion is tapered to give greater compensation to the strings of wider diameter. In particular, the overhang portion extends from {fraction (1/64)} of an inch over the first E string and it tapers at a constant rate to an extension of {fraction (1/32)} of an inch over the sixth E string. The overhang increases as the diameter of the string increases, thus the bass strings receive more compensation to compensate for their bulk and achieve the desired tone. Disadvantageously, this device is only a compromise solution because the extended portion of the nut is tapered at a constant rate from the treble side to the bass side of the instrument and the device does not account for strings with different core sizes and diameters.
A need therefore exists for a stringed musical instrument which provides better intonation and eliminates the above-described problems.
One aspect of the present invention is a compensated nut for a stringed musical instrument with a body, a neck and one or more strings. The compensated nut includes an elongated body with a front side, a back side, a top side, and a bottom side, and the elongated body is configured to extend across at least a portion of the neck of the instrument. The nut also includes one or more intonation portions on the front side of the elongated body and the intonation portions have different dimensions according to the desired pitch or intonation of the instrument. Desirably, the number of intonation portions is equal to the number of strings of the instrument, and each intonation portion is sized and dimensioned to improve the intonation of a particular string.
In one embodiment, the intonation portions desirably comprise cut-out sections found in the front side of the compensated nut. As one example, the cut-out sections preferably have a depth between about 0.001 inches (0.003 cm) and about 0.100 inches (0.254 cm), and the cut-out sections include a first side wall and a second side wall. The side walls are preferably generally parallel and joined by a lower surface. More preferably, the side walls are between about 0.010 inches (0.025 cm) and about 0.200 inches (0.508 cm) in length, and the walls extend to the top surface of the nut. The compensated nut desirably includes a slot for each string of the instrument and each slot is preferably located within a cut-out section.
The present invention is a compensated nut which improves the intonation of each string of a musical instrument such as a guitar. Advantageously, the nut is compensated different amounts according to the desired pitch of a particular string. Additionally, the compensated nut is especially effective in improving the intonation of the strings near the nut. Further, the compensated nut is suitable for use with a wide range of different guitars and other types of stringed musical instruments.
Another aspect of the present invention is a guitar with a body, neck, a bridge and compensated nut. The compensated nut includes an elongated body which extends across at least a portion of the neck of the guitar and the elongated body includes a plurality of intonation portions having different dimensions according to the desired pitch of the guitar. The guitar also includes a plurality of strings passing over the bridge and the nut, and a plurality of tuning keys attached to the neck. One end of each of the strings is attached to the body and/or the bridge and the other end of the string attached to a tuning key. As known, the tuning keys are adapted and configured to adjust the tension in the plurality of strings. Desirably, the compensated nut has a front side, a back side, a top side, and a bottom side, and the intonation portions are located at least partially in the front side of the elongated body. Additionally, the number of intonation portions in the compensated nut is preferably equal to the number of guitar strings.
The present invention is advantageously simple to manufacture because it consists of a single, solid component. This significantly reduces manufacturing costs. In addition, the compensated nut is easy to install and this reduces labor costs. Further, in contrast to the designs of conventional intonating devices, the present invention results in a more reliable and better sounding instrument which does not require any adjustments and it does not go out of tune. Thus, the compensated nut of the present invention improves both the reliability and sound of the guitar.
The present invention is also practical because of the ease of manufacturing, installation and use. In addition, the present invention can be used to improve the tuning of many different types and configurations of guitars, and it can be used with other types of lute or stringed instruments. Thus, for simplicity, the word xe2x80x9cguitarxe2x80x9d is used to represent all types of string instruments or lute-type instruments, and it will be understood that the present invention can be used with many different various musical instruments.
Another aspect of the present invention is a lute-type instrument with a body, a bridge, a neck attached to the body and a compensated nut connected to the neck. The compensated nut has a front side and a bottom side, and the nut includes one or more cut-out sections on the front side. The lute-type instrument also includes a plurality of strings extending from the bridge to the nut. Preferably, the bottom side of the nut contacts the neck of the instrument and the front side of the nut faces the body of the instrument. In addition, the cut-out sections desirably have different dimensions according to the desired pitch of the instrument and the number of cut-out sections in the nut is equal to the number of strings of the instrument.
Significantly, the present invention is easy to service and maintain because there are not moving parts and no adjustment of the device is required. Additionally, existing guitars can be readily retrofitted with the compensated nut and the compensated nut may be easily replaced. Further, the compensated nut may be easily modified according to the type of instrument.
Still another aspect of the present invention is a method of tuning an instrument with a body, a neck, a bridge and a plurality of strings. The method includes mounting a nut to the neck of the instrument, the nut having an elongated body with a front side, a back side, a top side, and a bottom side. The elongated body of the nut preferably has a length sufficient to extend across at least a portion of the neck of the instrument and the nut includes one or more intonation portions on the front side of the elongated body. The intonation portions have different dimensions according to the desired pitch of the instrument. The method also includes extending the strings from the bridge to the nut and attaching the strings to the bridge and the head of the instrument.
Yet another aspect of the present invention involves a nut for a stringed instrument. The nut comprises a substantially unitary elongated body, the body having a length sufficient to extend across at least a portion of the neck of the stringed instrument, a plurality of slots across the elongated body configured to position corresponding strings, a plurality of string termination points along the elongated body, each termination point corresponding to one of the plurality of slots, at least one of the string termination points offset in distance from another of the termination points with respect to a line perpendicular to the strings positioned by the slots. In one embodiment, at least three of the plurality of string termination points are offset from each other with respect to the perpendicular line, and in another embodiment, the offset is non-linear from termination point to termination point.
Further aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments that follows.